By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
NXT TV
Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center
Aired live July 25, 2023 on USA Network
[Hour One] Highlights from last week’s NXT, Smackdown, and Raw aired, all featuring Dominik Mysterio’s run as new NXT North American Champion…
Vic Joseph and Booker T were on commentary. Alicia Taylor was the ring announcer…
NXT North American Champion Dominik Mysterio and WWE Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley made their entrances. Vic Joseph hyped Rhea Ripley vs. Lyra Valkyria for later on in the show. Rhea Ripley introduced Dom as the NXT North American Champion. She mocked everyone for being shocked and freaked out that Dom won the title. Dom said he made the Mysterio name relevant. He was showered by boos.
The crowd mocked Dom’s mullet by chanting “cut the mullet”. Rhea said Dom’s mullet is amazing and he’s not gonna cut it. Rhea was about to address Lyra Valkyria challenging her, but she was cut off by Wes Lee making his entrance. Lee said he hates seeing his championship in Dom’s hands. Dom said not to interrupt Mami. Wes said the title represents 269 days of hard work and opportunity. Wes said he lifted the title, but the title also made Wes better. Wes said he put his heart and soul in the title.
Wes said that Dom best believe that he wants his rematch. Rhea said that NXT needed a new North American Champion in the first place. Wes said that’s true, but tonight. Mustafa Ali made his entrance. Ali said he has love and respect for Wes, but he has no respect for “Dum Dum”. Ali said Dom stole the title from him. Ali said he stole things like the title, catchphrases, his dad’s 619, his other dad’s Frog Splash, and the opportunity to beat Wes Lee. Ali said that Wes was a clown that dropped the ball.
Wes took exception to being called a “clown”. Wes said he’d drop Ali right now. Ali said he’s just frustrated that Dom cut the line. Ali said it’s Wes’s fault for letting Dom cut in line. Ali said Wes was too stupid to listen to advise. Wes slapped the mic from Ali’s hand. Dom cut in and said this isn’t a Mami and Dom problem. Dom said he’s going to beat all Wes’s records. Dom asked Ali to get out of the way. Ali tried to punch Dom, but Dom ducked and Ali hit Wes instead. Ali and Wes brawled while Dom and Rhea laughed from a distance up the ramp…
John’s Thoughts: Logical segment to tie up the loose end of the original Wes Lee vs. Mustafa Ali match. They didn’t play their hand yet though. It could either lead to a contenders match on this show or a triple threat on Sunday (as the crowd expects). Unlike last week where I felt like they could have had more Dom on the show, I thought it was smart to open up the show this week with him and Rhea as they are a good hook to get non-NXT viewers engaged at the onset of the show.
McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Tony D’Angelo and Stacks. McKenzie welcomed Tony D back. Tony D and Stacks bragged about beating down Gallus last week. Bronco Nima and Lucien Price showed up to stake their claim at the tag team titles that Tony D and Stacks are going for. Tony D challenged Nima and Price to a match later on…
The Schism made their entrance. They were followed by the entrances of Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams…[c]
The post-Raw clip aired from last night where Lyra Valkyria challenged Rhea Ripley to a match on NXT…
McKenzie Mitchell interviewed Lyra about why she challenged Rhea. Lyra said she’s been in NXT for 7 months and needs to know where she stands. She said that Rhea Ripley is the measuring stick in WWE. Lyra said she’s aware that Rhea is watching her. Lyra said she’s not going to hide in the shadows like Jacy Jayne. She said it’s not about Rhea or Jacy tonight, it’s about Lyra Valkyria showing the world who she is…
Ilja Dragunov made his entrance. Vic Joseph pointed out that there were Schism cultists in the crowd…
1. Ilja Dragunov, Trick Williams, and NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes vs. “The Schism” Joe Gacy, Rip Fowler, and Jagger Reid (w/Ava). Melo and Gacy started the match with quick chain wrestling. Gacy landed a shoulder tackle. Melo landed a dropkick and knife edge chop. Trick tagged in and hit Gacy with a high-air dropkick. Gacy slammed Trick to the mat and tagged in Fowler. Fowler hit Trick with a shoulder tackle. Trick countered a hip toss into a body slam and shoulder tackle. Trick hit Fowler with a pop-up punch.
Ilja tagged in and hit Fowler with stiff strikes. Ilja caught Fowler with a diving knee. Fowler tagged in Reid who walked right into chained German Suplexes. Reid blocked a third German, but Ilja hit Reid with a Tiger Feint Lariat. Trick tagged in and took a throat punch and tackle form Reid. Melo tagged in and dumped the Dyad from the ring. The show cut to picture-in-picture.[c]
Melo caught Reid with a superkick to tag in Trick for the hot tag. Trick pummeled Gacy with strikes and a dropkick. Trick hit Gacy with a flapjack. Trick dumped Gayc to ringside and tagged in Ilja, who took down Rip and Jagger. Ilja tried to tackle Gacy, but Gacy sidestepped and Ilja accidentally hit Trick. Gacy tried to hit Ilja with his handstand lariat finisher, but Ilja hit Gacy with a high knee. Gacy hit Ilja with a Saito Suplex.
Reid tagged in and gave Ilja headlock punches. Reid turned Ilja inside out with a lariat. Fowler tagged in. Ilja fought off both Dyad members with chops. Ilja hit Reid with an enbuigiri. Fowler held Ilja in place for Reid’s Enzuigiri. The Dyad hit Ilja with Ticket to Mayhem. Gacy tagged in. Two cultists (who we can all assume are The Creed Brothers) tripped up The Dyad at ringside. Ilja recovered and dodged a dive from Gacy. Hayes tagged himself in and hit Gacy with the Nothin’ But Net Bicycle Kick for the win.
Carmelo Hayes, Trick Williams, and Ilja Dragunov defeated The Schism via pinfall in 11:27.
Melo held back Trick Williams who was trying to go at Ilja for hitting him at ringside…
The show cut to footage of Roxanne Perez and Blair Davenport brawling at what looked like a bodega corner store. Vic promised more footage later in the show…
Von Wagner vs. Big Body Javi was hyped for after the break…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good match, but I feel like all the programs involved are a bit of an afterthought with most of NXT’s focus being on Judgment Day and Dominik Mysterio. The problem here is one of the programs being focused in this afterthought is the NXT Championship. I hope this isn’t the last we’ve seen from Ilja and Melo because they have a big match to promote on Sunday. I’m also not a big fan of The Creeds seemingly being built back to return to NXT. My guess is that the Creeds come back and they go with the actual write-off of the Grizzled Young Veterans, but what I don’t like is they are killing the integrity of stipulations, where a “loser leaves town” stipulation is supposed to have weight. I guess this is a new take on the Midnight Rider. The Midnight Cultist? I’m still mad that “Juan Cena” only appeared at house shows.
A Tiffany Stratton spotlight promo aired. She talked about not being in her prime and being at the top already. They showed footage of her pumping iron and doing workouts. She said she works harder and is hotter than everyone else. She said she’s about to appear at her first PLE as champion and she isn’t going to let a little brat take away the title from her on that day.
She talked about how she’s not going to let Thea take the title. She claimed she didn’t tap out in their last match. She said her hand grazed the mat and the ref didn’t see a tapout. Tiffany said payback is coming for making her tap out last week in the sneak attack. She said she’ll leave Great American Bash as women’s champion. Vic Joseph hyped the Tiffany Stratton vs. Thea Hail Submission Match for the NXT Women’s Title…
Vic Joseph hyped Dominik Mysterio vs. Wes Lee vs. Mustafa Ali in a Triple Threat for the North American Title at Great American Bash…
Von Wagner and Robert Stone got a televised entrance. Big Body Javi was already in the ring…
2. Von Wagner (w/Robert Stone) vs. “Big Body Javi” Javier Bernal. Wagner dominated the early part of the match with clubbing blows in the corners. Wagner hit Javi with a Big Boot. Wagner hit Javi with a Uranage for the win.
Von Wagner defeated Javier Bernal via pinfall in 0:55.
The crowd chanted “table” to Von. Von obliged and cleared the announce table. Wagner gave Javi a loud power bomb through the table. Out of nowhere, Bron Breakker appeared and gave Wagner a spear. Breakker grabbed and slammed it on the ground next to Von (I think he was supposed to hit Von’s hand?). Stone and referees got in-between Breakker and Von to end the segment…
Olympic Gold Medalist Gable Steveson was shown walking through the halls…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Simple squash for Von Wagner who seems to be finally getting a connection with the crowd. They’re really getting into is power move setpieces, like the table spot. Bron Breakker appearing was unexpected. I think he’s just tearing through Von because they can’t be putting Von over against Bron. Bron is on a bit of a losing streak in terms of big matches and he does need to heat back up, especially after putting in good work as a heel.
Carmelo Hayes congratulated Ilja Dragunov for the W backstage and respectfully wished each other luck on Sunday. Trick Williams walked in and snapped on Ilja. Melo tried to keep the peace. Trick took exception for Ilja hitting him in the head. Ilja said he likes Trick, but when you come at him he’ll break you. After Ilja left, Melo said that they can’t act unprofessional. Trick said he’s about to call a punkass out…
Olympic Gold Medalist Gable Steveson made his entrance. Gable soaked in “Gable” chants. He thanked the crowd and NXT. Gable said some people may not know who he is? He said he’ll introduce himself. Gable introduced himself. He soaked in “USA” chants. He talked about winning a Gold Medal in 2020 and being a two time NCAA Champion. He said at Paris at the next Olympics, he can become a 2 time gold medalist or go back to School to win another NCAA champion.
Before he revealed his decision, Baron Corbin walked out and said he was here to give Gable advise. Corbin said Gable should go back to College and the Olympics. Corbin said Gable should just not go back to NXT. Corbin said if he stays in NXT, Corbin will make Gable something he’s never done, fail. Corbin said Gable will question his existence and feel like he doesn’t belong. Corbin talked about never overstepping the line for 8 years, but he doesn’t care now.
Corbin said Gable is in the ring now swimming with sharks and Corbin is a Great White. Gable said Corbin made his decision easier. Gable challenged Corbin to a match at Great American Bash. Gable gave Corbin a series of Suplexes. Security ran out to hold Corbin back…
Kilani Jordan and Dana Brooke were walking backstage. Brooke was wearing a weird cat suit for some reason. Cora Jade was also walking around backstage…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Ehhhhh, a bit rough. Gable Steveson is no where ready for a WWE microphone yet. They kept him limited, but what little he said sounded rough. Bobby Steveson is WAYYYYY more ahead in pro wrestling than his more famous brother. I’m not a big fan of Baron Corbin seemingly being fed to WWE’s presumed “Next Kurt Angle”. Reason being, is they’ve just recently repackaged Corbin with a new intriguing character, and that character has to eat dirt his first match out?
Dominik Mysterio was holding up Rhea Ripley’s leg to help her stretch. He asked Rhea if she was right in setting up the triple threat match on Sunday. Rhea reminded Dom that Mami is always right and always on top…
[Hour Two] Dana Brooke and Kelani Jordan made their entrances. Brooke walkin’ out looking like she’s doin’ a catwoman cosplay at a strip club (I’m not being crass! It’s weird). Cora Jade made her entrance and was jumped by Brooke at the ramp..
3. Dana Brooke (w/Kelani Jordan) vs. Cora Jade in a Kendo Stick Match. Brooke threw Jade right at Booker T. The running joke of people being thrown at Booker continues. Cora recovered and tripped Dana when she hesitated on a kendo stick shot. Jade laid Brooke on the table and hit her in the gut with a kendo stick. Jade body slammed Brooke on a pile of Kendo Sticks. Jade gave Brooke a crossface with a kendo stick. The crowd chanted “tap”.
Brooke escaped. Jade tackled Brooke into the corner with a kendo stick strike. Jade hit Brooke in the gut with the stick. Jade used the stick to trap Brooke in the corner. Jade hit Brooke with a high knee. Brooke escaped a DDT attempt and tackled Jade in the corner. Jade avoided an overhead kendo stick shot. Brooke rallied with right hands. Brooke gave Jade lariats.
Brooke hit Jadd with a flip elbow. Jade countered with her Double Underhook DDT finisher. Dana Brooke kicked out of Jade’s finisher. Jade brought a chair in the ring and set it up. Jade said Brooke down on the chair. Jordan got on the apron for the distraction. Brooke sent Jade into the chair with a drop toehold. Brooke hit Jade in the gut and back with a chair. Jordan pulled out a pink kendo stick.
Brooke went to town on Jade with kendo stick shots. Brooke made a pile of kendo sticks on top of a chair. Brooke gave Jade a suplex on the pile of chair and sticks. Brooke barely hit a Swanton Bomb on Jade for the win.
Dana Brooke defeated Cora Jade via pinfall in 7:44.
John’s Thoughts: Oh no. That was not good. Plodding. Slow. Lots of air. Why did they have Dana Brooke kick out of Cora Jade’s finisher? It’s Dana F’n Brooke. Who loses all the time! Does Dana Brooke have blackmail material on HBK or something? I kid, I kid, but that was still weird. The crowd was totally not into Dana either. This didn’t seem worth it because there’s way more upside in Cora Jade than Dana Brooke.
Melo confronted Ilja in the locker room to inform him that Trick is going to call out Ilja. Melo said they don’t need all this because he and Ilja have a match on Sunday. Ilja said if Trick sticks to his challenge he’ll break Trick. Ilja said he’ll break Melo on Sunday…
Tony D’Angelo and Stacks made their entrance…[c]
Charlie Dempsey was sparring with a trainee (Miles Borne?). Drew Gulak separated the two and berated the rookie. Damon Kemp (Bobby Steveson) introduced himself to Charlie and Drew. Dempsey said maybe they can work something out?…
Bronco Nima and Lucian Price made their entrance. Scrypts (a.k.a. Reggie or Reginold) joined the commentary table…
4. Tony D’Angelo and Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo vs. Bronco Nima and Lucian Price. Nima and Price dominated early on. Stacks rallied back with right hands on Price. Tony tagged in and used a double leg takedown on Price. Tony D hit Price with hockey punches. Price came back with a lariat off a distraction from Nima. Nima hit Tony with a running single leg stomp to the chest. Nima rallied back with punches. Stacks tagged in.
Tony D fended off both men with hockey punches. Tony D tossed Stacks into Nima and Price in opposite corners with hip tosses. Stacks got a two count on Nima. Nima backdropped Stacks into a gutbuster by Price. Price hit Stacks with a lariat in the corner. Nima hit Stacks with a reverse Bronco Buster. Nima got a two count on Stacks after Stack took a face wash from Price. Stacks came back with a diving uppercut.
Axiom appeared out of nowhere and hit Scrypts with a dropkick. Axiom was wearing a turtleneck sweater. Axiom hit Scrypts with a suicide dive. Tony D gave Price a series of belly to belly suplexes. Tony D hit Price with a spinebuster. Nima broke up the pin. Stacks gave Nima a dropkick. Tony D and Stacks hit Price with a Double Team Backdrop for the win.
Tony D’Angelo and Channing Lorenzo defeated Lucien Price and Bronco Nima via pinfall in 5:00.
Joe Coffey, Mark Coffey, an Wolfgang appeared on the big screen to taunt Tony D and Stacks, talking about how Tony D and Stack’s won’t get the tag titles on Sunday. Joe ended the promo with the “Gallus boys on top” catchphrase…
John’s Thoughts: A well worked tag match with both teams having good chemistry. Price and Nima just showed up on NXT, but they’ve been teaming up for almost a year on NXT Level Up and have looked good from what I’ve seen. What I’m not the biggest fan of is this monster tag team losing in their first match in order to boost the mafia guys. That said, I’m kinda hoping Tony D and Stacks would win the tag titles on Sunday because Gallus hasn’t done much to showcase the tag division.
A Dijak promo aired where he called out Eddy Thorpe for thinking he’s a tough guy after NXT Underground. Dijak said Eddy needs to slow his role. Dijak said he’s chasing gold. He called himself a stream of justice and said he hands justice down with great conviction and reckless abandon. DIjak said Eddy doesn’t want that and can’t beat it…
“Exclusive footage” of Roxanne Perez attacking Blair Davenport at a gas station convienence store was hyped for after the break…[c]
Vic Joseph and Booker T checked in on commentary. Joseph said that Baron Corbin vs. Gable Steveson was made official for Sunday at Great American Bash…
Instagram and “Security Cam Footage” was shown of Roxanne Perez beating up Blair Davenport in a convenience store that also has a Mexican restaurant in it. Davenport managed to turn the tables and toss Perez into canned food. Davenport tossed Perez into several food items. Perez turned the tables with a shopping cart and banana boxes. Perez slammed a freezer door on the face of Davenport. Perez taunted Davenport as police pulled up…
John’s Thoughts: I like the effort being put into trying to give Perez a bit of an edge and trying to make her seem more grown up. Was this an ode to Stone Cold beating up Roxanne’s mentor in a supermarket? Just with a bodega twist? Only thing that made me cringe was the camera cuts and edits with regular and “security” cameras.
Vic Joseph announced Roxanne Perez vs. Blair Davenport in a “Weapons Wild” match was advertised for the Great American Bash…
Lash Legend, Jakara Jackson, Oro Mensah, and Noam Dar were hosting Supernova Sessions. Lash Legend introduced the show. Noam Dar was still in a coma. Oro introduced Noam as the guest. They had to hold up his hands to make him cheer. Lash called out Nathan Frazer and said that they did research on him. Lash pointed out that Noam wasn’t medically cleared to defend the title when Frazer won the belt.
Oro talked about stepping up for his brother and pushing Nathan to the limit. Oro said that Nathan is a criminal who ran away with the Heritage Cup. Jakara said that to beat the man you have to beat the man, and Noam is the man. Lash said they found a solution to fix everything. Lash Legend showed Noam the Heritage Cup which woke Noam up from his coma. Noam cried and cradled the cup like a baby. Jakara Jackson introduced Noam Dar as the undisputed Heritage Cup Champion.
Noam Dar screamed from the top of his lungs that he’s still the champion. Nathan Frazer made his entrance with his own Heritage Cup. Dragon Lee was also there. Dragon and Nathan were confused as to why there are two cups. Dar said he didn’t lose the cup and he’s a real champion. Nathan called Dar and the 2nd cup a fraud. Frazer said they can settle this dispute now that Dar is okay? Oro said the Meta Four have a numbers advantage.
Dragon said they didn’t come alone. Valentina Feroz and Luisa Leon dragged Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson to ringside. Dragon and Nathan dumped Oro and Noam from the ring and hit them with suicide dives. Frazer and Dragon posed in the ring to end the segment…
John’s Thoughts: NXT is weird tonight with a bunch of weird segments. Two Heritage Cup Championships? I don’t know why? They would have just been fine continuing the Weekend at Bernies gimmick from last week. This segment felt unnecessary.
A documentary style training montage aired for Thea Hail. Andre Chase talked about how Thea started wrestling at 16 years old and how her parents would take her to indie shows to watch wrestling. Duke Hudson said that he’s part of the reason why Thea is a future champion. He said he’s a motivator and best friend.
Chase said hail isn’t the biggest or strongest but she has the heart of a lion and can lock in the Kimura from anywhere. Hudson said Hail will win the championship after the Kimura Lock. Hail said miracles don’t happen everyday, but she doesn’t need a miracle. Hail said she needs a chance, a chance to prove people wrong. Hail said she doesn’t think she can win, she knows she can win…
WWE Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio made their entrance…[c]
Angel Garza and Humberto Carrillo were shown arguing in a parking lot last week. Carrillo shut up Angel and told him if they are here to chase women or chase glory? Carrillo said he’s not doing this with Angel anymore. After Humberto left, Angel wondered what Humberto meant. Angel punched a garage door…
Lyra Valkyria made her entrance…
5. WWE Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley (w/Dominik Mysterio) vs. Lyra Valkyria in a non-title match. Rhea pressured Lyra to the corner and told Lyra to prove to her that she’s a badass. Rhea shoved Lyra away from a pumphandle. Rhea used a back elbow to escape a standing switch. Rhea took down Lyra with a shoulder tackle. Lyra got a two count off a rollup. Rhea came right back with a back kick. Lyra escaped the corner and avoided Rhea with a baseball slide.
Lyra hit Rhea with a huracanrana. Rhea reversed an arndrag into a German Suplex and dropkick. Rhea and Dom taunted Lyra heading into the picture-in-picture.[c]
The show cut back with ten minutes left at the top of the hour (last two weeks haven’t had overruns). Rhea dominated Lyra with methodical offense. Rhea used her power to block a backslide. Rhea blocked a La Mistica with a knee strike. Rhea hit Lyra with a reverse body slam for a two count. Lyra reversed a Rip Tide into a Sleeper Hold. Rhea came back with a headbutt to knock out Lyra.
Rhea went to the top rope, and did the Eddie Guerrero shimmy. Lyra dumped Rhea from the top rope to ringside. Dominik Mysterio shoved Rhea out of the way and ate Lyra’s wrecking ball dropkick. Lyra hit Rhea with a Dragonrana at ringside. Rhea went for a body slam that Lyra countered with a Spike DDT. Lyra hit Rhea with a Frog Splash for a good nearfall.
A “This is Awesome” chant ensued. Lyra hit Rhea with Muay Thai roundhouse kicks and a dropkick to the shin. Rhea avoided a Crescent Kick. Lyra went for a crossbody when went right into Rhea’s knee. Rhea hit Lyra with the Rip Tide for the win.
Rhea Ripley defeated Lyra Valkyria via pinfall in 10:11.
Rhea grabbed Lyra by the jaw and gave Lyra a motivational speech. Rhea told Lyra to prove her right and take down Jacy Jayne. Lyra said she would…
Trick Williams was shown heading to the ring from backstage…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good match that elevates Lyra Valkyria in the eyes of the NXT viewers. Lyra Valkyra seems to have replaced Alba Fyre as HBK’s favorite wrestler given how much time they give her on TV and how much they protect her. There’s no shame to losing to the top women’s star in WWE and kudos to Rhea for making Lyra look good in defeat. On a side note, Lyra should use that Frog Splash as a finisher instead of the Crescent Kick that doesn’t look good all the time.
[Overrun] The Meta Four vs. Nathan Frazer, Dragon Lee, Valentina Feroz, and Luisa Leon was announced for the Great American Bash pre-show. Vic Joseph ran through the Great American Bash main card…
Trick Williams made his entrance to no music. Trick said that Melo will take care of Ilja on Sunday, but right now is about a fight. Trick called out Ilja. Ilja accepted and walked to ringside. Trick gave Ilja a dropkick. Trick tossed Ilja around at ringside. Trick gave Ilja punches against the barricade. Trick gave Ilja a body slam at ringside. Trick tossed Ilja into the steel steps. Ilja caught Trick off a dive with a enzuigiri.
Ilja gave Trick three chained German Suplexes at ringside. Ilja gave Trick Kobashi chops against the turnbuckle. Ilja gave Trick a diving forearm in the center of the ring. Ilja followed up with a 2nd diving forearm. Ilja set Trick in the corner. Ilja was about to hit Trick with Torpedo Moscow, but Carmelo Hayes took the bullet for his buddy. Ilja took the mic and the NXT Championship. Ilja said Melo is a man of honor and loyalty is rare now a days. Ilja said Melo can hang on to his friendship with Trick because that friendship will be all Melo has when Ilja takes the NXT Championship. NXT closed…
John’s Thoughts: A good segment, but I have mixed thoughts. I think the stuff with Judgment Day and Dominik Mysterio has taken away a lot of time that would have been used to build Ilja vs. Melo. I don’t disagree with NXT for doing that, Dom and Judgment Day draw numbers. Their NXT Championship was just a necessary and circumstantial sacrifice. Ilja was good here, and I thought he’s done solid work building himself as the top contender.
The person who doesn’t look strong is Carmelo Hayes who comes off as a background player in all this. Even Trick Williams got more shine in this segment than Melo. Match on Sunday should be wonderful though. Ilja Dragunov is going to take an ass beating like no other (which is his MO) and come back with a bunch of fury. This week’s NXT, storyboard wise, felt a bit “off”. The pacing was fine, but I wonder if the stuff with Dominik Mysterio threw their initial booking out of whack a bit? Putting the title on Dom was a smart idea, but it probably led to changes in direction.
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